2T2R – Two transmitting and two receiving antennae. This equals a better transmission by combining two different signals and reducing noise through interferometry (to understand why to read “twisted pair” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twisted_pair). For long distances, this is only true if each antenna uses a polarization orthogonal to the other antenna.
4T4R – Four transmitting and four receiving antennae. This equals a better transmission by combining four different signals and reducing noise through interferometry. This is only true if the four radio waves from each antenna are reflected by buildings in cities or by walls inside the building. But for long distances in the countryside, 4T4R does not bring more signal quality than 2T2R.
40 MHz – Megahertz (MHz). This is the maximum channel bandwidth of ORS in 5G. The channel bandwidth represents how many frequencies can be transmitted at the same time. If it was a musical instrument, it would be the same as how many octaves can be played. The more bandwidth, the more frequencies can be transmitted at the same time, and the more data can be exchanged, the more Mbps.
2×1 W (Watt) – Power transmitted by each antenna of the ORS. This amount of power allows the signal to reliably travel between 200 m and 10 km, depending on the frequency (700 MHz, 1900 MHz, 2600 MHz, 3500 MHz, etc.), the type of terminal (smartphone, modem), the type of antenna (built-in, omni, high gain omni, high gain directional), the environment (indoor, city, village, countryside, forest) and the weather (clear, rain, fog, etc.). Please note however that the transmission distance of a base station does not depend on the power of the base station but on the power of the UE (smartphone, modem) which is only 0.2W at most. Each time the base station sends a signal, the UE needs to acknowledge it. If the UE is too far, the UE signal is too low and the base station does not receive the acknowledgement. Without acknowledgement, the transmission is stopped. Adding power to UE could, in theory, help to increase transmission distance, but this is sadly not an option with most UEs. Adding power to the base station will not help the UE to send the acknowledgement. However, adding a better antenna to the base station will help the base station to receive the acknowledgement signal from distant UEs. Adding power to the base station will, in reality, help for only one thing: send more information to more UEs at the same time by using more frequencies in parallel. This is why very powerful base stations (ex. 4×40W) are useful for public telecom networks where the download is the most important in dense areas with many UEs such as cities. Mid-range base stations (ex. 2×20W) are useful for public telecom networks in the countryside where the download is the most important. Low power base stations (ex. 2×1W) are useful for private networks where upload is the most important.
eNB - Evolved NodeB. An industry term signifying that the base station can do radio communication with mobile handsets using the “4G” radio signal encoding also known as Long Term Evolution (LTE).
gNB - gNodeB. An industry term signifying that the base station can do radio communication with mobile handsets using the “5G” radio signal encoding also known as New Radio (NR).
epc - Enhanced Packet Core. An industry term used when referring to the 4G protocols that are used to manage the registration, position, handover, voice services, and data services of UEs attached to eNBs and, possibly, gNBs.
5gc – 5G Core Network. An industry term used when referring to the 5G protocols that are used to manage the registration, position, handover, voice services, and data services of UEs attached to gNBs.
5G NSA – A 5G network which combines epc, eNB and gNB. 5G NSA networks need to use at least two frequencies: one for the eNB and one for the gNB. In theory, a 5G NSA network can be implemented with two ORS.
5G SA – A 5G network which combines 5gc and gNB. 5G SA networks only need one frequency. A 5G SA network can be implemented with a single ORS.
4G – A 4G network which combines epc and eNB.
IMS – IP Multimedia Subsystem. An industry term which refers to the 4G multimedia protocols that implement voice communication and SMS. Without IMS, UEs can not make a phone call or exchange SMS (but they can still do data). By default, ORS does not activate the IMS functions, which are not useful in most private networks and are usually replaced by MCPTT software.
OSS/BSS – Operation Support System/Business Support System. The industry term refers to the ability to remotely manage automatically the configuration and maintenance of a fleet of ORS, and provide a plug-and-play solution. The OSS/BSS of the ORS is open source. It can be customized to various needs.
MCPTT - Mission Critical Push-to-Talk. For example, a push-to-talk function such as shown in the demonstration, but also messaging, video sharing, alarm, etc.
LTE – The radio transmission encoding used by eNB, also known as 4G radio. LTE is an ambiguous term, since it also sometimes means the complete family of 4G protocols beyond eNB. The ORS is compatible with LTE.
NR – The radio transmission encoding used by gNB, also known as 5G radio or New Radio. The ORS is compatible with NR.
Plug & Play – The ORS is able to perform all its functions by simply plugging it to AC and Internet access, as demonstrated in the video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsfyGsxcN5I).
B(Number) – The different 4G Radio Bands that the ORS can be configured for LTE. The ORS supports B1 • B2 • B3 • B4 • B5 • B7 • B8 • B10 • B12 • B13 • B20 • B25 • B26 • B28 • B30 • B38 • B39 • B40 • B41 • B42 • B43 • B48 • B49
N(Number) – The different 5G Radio Bands that the ORS can be configured for NR. The ORS supports N1 • N2 • N3 • N5 • N7 • N8 • N12 • N13 • N20 • N25 • N26 • N28 • N30 • N38 • N39 • N40 • N41 • N48 • N78 • N79